Over 6.9 million people were murdered by the Covid-19 virus. Still, more than three years after the initial proclamation, the World Health Organisation lifted the worldwide emergency designation on Friday, allowing governments to manage the virus alongside other infectious diseases.
After a meeting on Thursday, the Emergency Committee of the World Health Organisation recommended that the UN organisation lift the “public health emergency of international concern” status that has been in effect since January 30, 2020, due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “It is therefore with great hope that I declare Covid-19 as a global health emergency.” However, he cautioned that the end of the emergency did not mean that Covid was no longer a global health concern.
There was an emotional outpouring from several WHO members as they asked countries to consider the lessons they had learnt from the pandemic during a lengthy conference call to brief the press on the decision.
Those funeral pyres must not be forgotten, and the graves that were dug must not be forgotten. We shall never forget them,” said Maria Van Kerkhove, the technical lead for WHO’s Covid-19.
According to WHO data, due to widespread vaccination, the availability of better treatments, and a level of community immunity from earlier infections, the Covid death rate has fallen from a peak of more than 100,000 individuals per week in January 2021 to just over 3,500 in the week to April 24, 2023.
Many have already adapted as the pandemic receded in different locations, but ending the emergency might end international collaboration, financial efforts, or a shift in focus.
The war has not yet been won. There are still holes in our defences, and this or another virus will find and exploit them. And it needs fixing,” said Michael Ryan, head of WHO emergencies.
Although the WHO did not officially declare the commencement of the Covid pandemic in March 2020, it did begin using the phrase.
To paraphrase Ryan’s remark, “Pandemics usually end when the next pandemic begins.”
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden declared the outbreak last year. With the end of the domestic state of emergency for COVID on May 11, the world’s largest economy will stop paying for vaccines and testing for many individuals and pass responsibility to the commercial market, as has happened in several other countries.
In April last year, the European Union declared that the pandemic’s emergency phase had ended, and other regions followed suit.
“CONCERNING HEALTH ISSUES”
China has been devastated by a significant increase of COVID infections in the four months since the country abandoned its prolonged, severe prohibitions, prompting an announcement from the World Health Organisation.
Although the coronavirus remains unpredictable, the decision indicates that WHO advisors believe a new, more severe coronavirus variation is unlikely to arise in the following months.
The prevalence of both mask use and medical diagnosis has dropped dramatically in recent years. In response to the COVID pandemic, some nations have mandated the use of face masks once again. Just this week, the World Health Organisation (WHO) unveiled a plan to help nations deal with the long-term effects of COVID.
Infectious disease experts concur that chronic opportunistic viral infection with encephalitis (COPVID) will provide a long-term challenge to healthcare systems worldwide.
To paraphrase, “It is still a significant public health problem and looks likely to remain one for the foreseeable future.”